EP 1 795 847 A 2 discloses a generic charge air cooler which is composed of flat pipes, corrugated ribs, collection tanks and connecting pieces, wherein the individual parts of the charge air cooler are produced from aluminium and soldered to each other. In order to be able to reduce the number of individual parts of the charge air cooler and thereby make it easier to produce, a construction principle known from parallel flow condensers was transferred to the charge air cooler by arranging it in a housing through which the charge air can flow.
EP 1 785 609 A 1 discloses a further charge air cooler, in which charge air flows into and out of the housing thereof and thereby flows through the charge air cooler. The housing has a mounting opening into which the charge air cooler can be inserted and must be fastened with the connection plate thereof. This should in particular ensure that the charge air cooler forms a structural unit with the housing, which unit is more stable with respect to oscillations and vibrations.
Further charge air coolers are known from WO 2005/001366 A3 and DE 10 2007 043 992 B4.
The disadvantage of the known prior art is that the charge air cooler is in each case installed as a separate component in a cooling circuit, for example of an internal combustion engine, and cannot be operated without a separate pump.